


Feed Me Not

by lori_yuy



Category: Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997), Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020), Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
Genre: Food Issues, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-07-17
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:53:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25345744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lori_yuy/pseuds/lori_yuy
Summary: Rufus Shinra started a hunger strike after a nasty argument with his father. 13 year old rookie Tseng was sent in to deal with the issue. Rufus later reminisces about the things that Tseng did.
Relationships: Rufus Shinra/Tseng
Comments: 8
Kudos: 38





	Feed Me Not

**Author's Note:**

> Rufus and Tseng are the same age for this story.

"Director Veld, I need you to do something about my son."

Veld knew the moment he had been called up that this exact statement was coming his way. He saw it in the irritated expression on the President's face during the executive staff meeting two days ago. The father and son had another argument, a regular occurrence.

Last time this happened, the President's son had refused to sleep out of spite. That time, Veld had to send in a company pipe engineer to deliver a dose of sleep drug through the water input pipe of Rufus's apartment then send in Rude to knock him out gently and put him to bed. The Turks are trained in special operations, but never had Veld imagined taking care of the President's problem child becoming their specialty.

"Is something the matter with Rufus Sir?" Veld always tried to keep a professional facade through these episodes.

"He's hunger-striking. He and I had a really bad argument." The President's face was covered in a scowl.

If Veld wasn't called to handle these situations so often, he would have thought that the President didn't care for his son like most others within the company. There were only a handful of people who really knew how the President felt about his wayward son. Mostly his closest executive staff, but only Heidegger, himself, and Reeve seem to ever get involved.

"I see...he is at that age where boys are difficult Sir, I wouldn't worry about it too much."

"Make sure he eats."

Veld nodded that his orders were understood and left.

~...~

The new order certainly sounded easy enough, but Veld knew it was never that easy where Rufus Shinra is involved. 

Make him eat he said. Veld huffed out an amused laughter. Aside from going in to spoon-feed the young teenager himself, who else does he have at his disposal to get this mission under way?

Some of the older Turks did not want anything to do with the family feuds.

Rude could go...no Rude won't be able to get Rufus to eat. He was too quiet and has no persuasive skills. You need a master manipulator or a master of psychology to deal with Rufus, and Rude was neither.

Reno....Reno knew how to "take care of people" by beating them up. Veld can't imagine the brash youngster trying to feed the President's son.

One of the female Turks? He thought back on the last time he sent Martial Arts or Guns in. Uh maybe not.

His more experienced Turks (experienced in dealing with children with temper tantrums) were currently out on the field.

There was also Tseng.  
Tseng's been in the Turks for only a couple months, a rookie by the full definition of the word, even though Veld had raised and trained the Wutaiian boy himself for several years now. Speaking of the devil, the rookie showed up with a concerned look on his face.

"Director, is something wrong?"

The boy was small for his age at 13.  
Tseng and Rude were the same age but Rude was a little over half a year older and of much more substantial build. Rude had a couple of growth spurts already at 13, making him tower over the other recruits his age. Tseng looked like he hasn't even started hitting a growth spurt and not about to any time soon.

Veld looked thoughtfully at the pip-squeak that barely reached past the top of his desk peeking at him. If Veld had to quickly summarize Tseng, he would say that the boy was perceptive and emotionally intelligent. And although unknown to most of his Turks, the boy was also cunning, creative, and randomly unpredictable. Veld had learned of those qualities through living with the boy the past couple of years.

Tseng might be too inexperienced to handle the likes of Rufus Shinra, although....maybe the similarity in age and the boy's personality might just do the trick.

"Sir?"

"Oh sorry Tseng, I was just contemplating. How do you feel about a mission to deal with the President's son?"

Tseng blinked. "Did they fight again?"

A grin formed on Veld's face.

The boy was truly perceptive and apparently had been paying attention to all the going-ons in the company. "Uh huh."

"What's the mission?"

"To get the President's son to eat." Veld replied.

"That sounds like something a nanny should be doing instead." Cheeky.

~...~

The first thing Tseng saw as the door to Rufus Shinra's apartment opened was a huge man in military attire. Director Heidegger of Public Security.

Rufus was on the couch fighting with the Director, who had a spoon in hand. Food was spilt all over the place, onto Rufus's clothes, Heidegger's pants, on the furniture, and on the floor.

"YOU CAN'T MAKE ME EAT!!" the blond boy yelled as he punched away at Heidegger's arm holding the spoon.

"Your father is concerned for your health, you ungrateful little bastard!" Heidegger growled as he pushed the boy back onto the couch.

Tseng was a bit shocked at the language being directed at the President's son. He cleared his throat. Two sets of eyes landed on him with uncomfortable stares.

"I was sent by Director Veld. I'll take over from here." Tseng braved.

"Hmph...Veld's sending in kids now is he?" Heidegger resigned and put the spoon back in the bowl on the coffee table. "Aren't you Veld's adopted kid? You're a Turk now?"

"Yes sir, I'm fairly new on the job." Tseng replied respectfully.

"Let's see what you're made of then." Heidegger patted the fallen food from his clothes and stood up to leave.

Tseng felt a pair of blue eyes trained on the back of his head as he watched the Director of Public Security exit the apartment. He turned around to assess the situation. Luckily the food that was spilt didn't have any sauce that would leave stains in the furniture or clothes.

Peas...it was a bowl of steamed peas. Rufus sat in the middle of the mess of vegetables, a couple of peas still hanging off his shirt.

"Where is the vacuum cleaner?" Tseng asked and Rufus pointed to a closet in the corner. 

Rufus stood up and removed the peas sticking to his clothes. "Thanks."

Tseng wordlessly removed the spilled vegetables from the floor and the furniture. He didn't really expect the young heir to thank him for anything. Once he was done, he put the machine away and stood in front of the heir who is now seated back on the couch.

"Sir, I apologize for the late introduction. I am Tseng of the Turks. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Rufus gave him a slight nod, but seemed otherwise uninterested in him. "I assume my dad asked Veld to send someone?"

Tseng acknowledged yes and Rufus seems to be contemplating previous encounters with Veld's people and nodded to himself.

"Is there any reason you're refusing to eat Sir?" Tseng started diplomatically.

"Hah...to spite my father, what else is new?"

"Is that really it?" Tseng prodded.

A cute pout formed on Rufus's face after a few minutes of silence.  
"I hate peas..."  
"And you can't make me eat them." he added after a pause.

First order of things, assess your situation. That was what Tseng was taught. After talking to Rufus some more, Tseng pinpointed the issue to the food itself. Yes, the Shinra heir was throwing a temper tantrum at his father, but it can't only be attributed to the argument alone.

No peas then. Tseng looked at the rest of the food that was sitting on the tray. Baked fish sticks on a bed of plain buttered rice, a slice of garlic bread, and something that looked like vegetable compote and a cup of mandarin oranges. It looked decent enough but not very appetizing.

"Shall I bring you something better to eat Sir?" Tseng attempted to appease Rufus.

"No, go away."

Tseng's assessment said he wasn't going to get anywhere further today and he took the tray of food on his way out the apartment.

Rufus rummaged through the drawer under his bed after Tseng had left.

A rookie Turk huh...looked like he might have been younger than Rufus himself. Tseng was very formal but was at least nice, unlike Heidegger. He took out a bag of snacks from the drawer and started munching away.

Veld looked up as a tray of food was placed in front of his eyes. "What is this?"

"Rufus Shinra's meal." Tseng replied matter-of-factly.

"...looks healthy. Report." Veld said as he examined the contents of the tray. It looked disgusting honestly.

"Director Heidegger was attempting to feed Rufus. It looked like they had gotten into a physical brawl in the apartment over the food. I ended up cleaning the mess but left Rufus alone as I don't think he was willing to engage with me further today."

"Tseng, I sent you to get him to eat."

"No can do with the food Director Heidegger brought, but I've come up with a plan. However, I will need to know where I can find information on what Rufus likes to eat. He'll be fine today, he didn't look dehydrated or starved."

Veld nodded at Tseng's assessment. "Try the executive lounge's chef." 

He has a feeling the boy had something up his sleeve.

~...~

Steak smothered in mushroom and onion compote with seasoned fries.  
Spicy chicken wings - extra crispy.  
Chili cheese dogs - dripping in chili cheese.  
Lemon shrimp pasta - lots of shrimp.  
Chicken broccoli carbonara - extra broccoli and cheese.  
Crab cakes with slaw and remoulade.  
Baked vegetable gratin.  
Onion ring towers, mustard and ketchup on the side.  
Braised greens.  
Green beans with bacon.  
Broccoli cheese risotto.  
Sweet potato fries dusted with cinnamon sugar.  
Garlic mashed potatoes with a gratuitous serving of gravy.  
Caesar salad- lots of croutons.  
Key lime yogurt.  
Pancakes, bacon, and fried eggs.  
Waffles with fresh berries and a dust of powdered sugar.  
Toast with raspberry jam or toasted croissants.  
Pan-grilled sweet sausages.  
Hash browns.  
Peach jelly.  
Ice cream.  
Tiramisu.  
Panna cotta.  
Cherry cheesecake.

Tseng was surprised by how many food items on the list were normal or at least easily obtainable. He had thought the Shinra heir would want to eat the high-end dishes that he couldn't even pronounce. When he mentioned Rufus Shinra by name, the head chef had handed him a recipe for crepes, apparently a family recipe passed down from Rufus's mother.

Veld had called him in the meanwhile and told Tseng that the President had sent Reeve up to Rufus's apartment for the day.

"What did Director Tuesti bring up there?" Tseng asked out of curiosity.

"Grilled chicken, steamed vegetables - no peas per your report, a slice of chocolate cake, and a toy cat." Veld answered swiftly.

"...a toy cat?"

"He might be Rufus Shinra but he's still a kid Tseng, and it's Reeve's pet project apparently. Anyways, how's your mission going?"

"I've found and compiled a list of the foods from the executive chef. Please tell the President to stop sending others up to Rufus tomorrow morning. I want to start executing my plan then." Tseng briefed Veld.

"Understood, good luck. Don't forget the meeting with the President in ten minutes." Veld hung up and got off his chair. He had to get ready for the meeting himself.

The trio stood in front of the President's desk, young Tseng to the side.

"Rufus hasn't eaten again yesterday?" President Shinra questioned with a displeased tone in his voice.

"I tried and then the rookie Turk over there took over, it seems like he couldn't do anything either." Heidegger answered.

"Sir, Tseng had examined the reasons and found a couple of issues and is implementing a plan to get Rufus to eat." Veld pushed back on Heidegger's comment.

"I had brought up his meal not too long ago Sir, it looked like he might take an interest in it today." Reeve added.

"Very good Reeve."

A call came in on the phone on the President's desk then.

"Hello? ...I see." President Shinra put his phone down.

"Well Reeve....the maid called. He took the cake but haven't eaten it, but left the rest of the food and a note for you." The President's expression was unreadable.

"Uh...yes Sir?"

"He said 'I like dogs more'."

~...~

Rufus looked up from the pieces on the coffee table that used to be Reeve's toy cat. He was in the midst of disassembling it for fun.

Tseng had come into the apartment with a tray in hand.

"Good morning Sir." he nodded in greeting.

The tray was placed in front of Rufus.  
Fluffy buttermilk pancakes, bacon fried to a crispy perfection, sunny-side up eggs topped with a pinch of salt and pepper, and a glass of orange juice. Everything looked and smelled delectable.

If it wasn't for the fact that he was running low on his secret stash of snacks, Rufus would not have given the food any glances.

Tseng sat down on the floor next to him. "Is that Reeve's cat?"

"Was."

"...Was."

A silence developed between them, minutes ticked by. "Are you not eating your breakfast Sir?"

"What do you think Tseng?" Rufus said nonchalantly as he picked apart yet another piece of the toy. He set the head down on top of the coffee table and started disassembling the body.

A few more minutes passed in silence before Tseng moved the tray in front of himself and picked up the fork and knife.

'He's going to try to force me to eat.' Rufus thought to himself.

Tseng cut into the pancake and sliced through the bacon slowly. Rufus watched out of the corner of his eyes at Tseng's deliberately slow movements. His stomach growled lightly, betraying his hunger.

Tseng stuck the fork into the pancake and....

Rufus watched with wide eyes.

IS HE EATING MY BREAKFAST???

Tseng kept scooping the food off the tray and within a couple of minutes, finished every morsel then gulped down the orange juice. 

He got up and took the tray with him. "Well, I'll see you around lunch time Sir."

Rufus stared at Tseng's retreating form with disbelief.

~...~

Lunch time rolled around and Tseng came in right on the dot.

Rufus eyed the tiny Turk hefting a tray almost too large for him to hold.

Steak with garlic mashed potatoes. Seasoned fries and ketchup on the side. A small bowl of broccoli cheese risotto, and French onion soup. Panna cotta in a dessert dish.

Rufus could feel himself salivating at the food in the tray. The scent of the steak wafted throughout his apartment.

Tseng slowly walked in, balancing everything on the heavy tray carefully. He gently placed it down on the coffee table and looked Rufus in the eyes.

Rufus turned his gaze when he saw the glint in Tseng's eyes. The damned little Turk was taunting him!

He imagined the smirk that would be plastered on his father's face if the Turk reports today that he had finally eaten. He shook his head. No way his father is winning this, not even by temptation with a really REALLY delicious looking meal.

Rufus took one more look at the pip-squeak of a Turk who hadn't moved since putting the tray down. Tseng had taken up a seat on the floor like he did that morning, poking at the head of the cat toy that sat on the coffee table.

Rufus glanced between Tseng, the toy, and the food that was on the table. He decided to play along and see what happens. The Turk's mission must have been to get him to eat right? He can't just eat all his food again right? Tseng would get fired for doing that right? 

Rufus plucked a book from his collections and plopped down on the couch behind Tseng and began reading.

Ten minutes passed.

"Would you like your lunch now Sir?" Tseng turned around to face him. Rufus stayed silent and didn't bother to even glance up from his book.

Another minute passed before Tseng turned back around to face the tray of food on the table.

Thirty minutes later, all the food was gone.

Rufus had secretly been staring with awe and silent horror as he watched the Turk down his lunch in front of his eyes. 

HIS steak...HIS panna cotta! Tseng didn't even leave a single crumb!

"I'll see you at dinner time tonight." He said as he left with the now empty tray.

Rufus got up from the couch and inspected the moisture left by the heat of the tray still on his coffee table.

What the hell? Was the young Turk seriously going to eat ALL HIS food? The Turk may be tiny but he just ate a whole lot of food. Wasn't his order to get Rufus fed?

Veld received a call mid-afternoon. The President was sounding rather angry over the phone.

"Yes Sir, let me ask him about it. I'm sorry about what happened Sir." He endured a few more minutes of angry yelling before it was finally over.

"Tseng." Veld called the boy over.

"Yes Sir?" Tseng's stomach looked like someone stuffed him to the brim.

"...why did you eat all of Rufus's food?"

"It's part of the plan Sir, and it's working."

Veld looked at the young Turk with skeptical eyes.  
"Are you sure? President Shinra wasn't thrilled. He said Rufus had actually called him up and complained personally."

"Doesn't that sound like it's working to you Director?" Tseng had a smug look on his face.

Veld thought about what Tseng just said.  
"You're right, he was desperate enough to call his father to complain. Alright, I trust you know what you're doing. I'll handle the explanation to President Shinra, you keep doing what you feel is right."

"I'm not doing this more than one day Sir, I feel like I might burst from all the food."

Veld laughed and patted him on the back, which resulted in a rather loud burp.

~...~

Rufus Shinra was anxious as the clock rolled past his usual dinner time. He started tapping his fingers on the table impatiently as he waited for the inevitable meal to be delivered.

He wasn't sure if he was more irritated about the fact that he had called his father to complain, the fact that the Turk had eaten two of his meals today, or the fact that he was actually waiting for the next meal. He was about to kick the table in ire when the door of his apartment opened.

Tseng came in with his dinner and placed it on the coffee table before sitting down in his usual spot on the floor.

Rufus eyed the other teenager and the tray.  
He was getting really hungry and it didn't help that he had watched this guy eat his food earlier in the day.

Tseng revealed two crabcakes smothered in remoulade and a bowl of lobster bisque with soup crackers on the side. A slice of tiramisu sat in a dessert plate next to it. Rufus's stomach made an embarrasingly loud rumbling sound and he looked away as Tseng looked into his eyes.

"Your dinner Sir." Tseng said calmly.  
Rufus's face twisted with annoyance and he huffed and tilted his chin up in defiance.

Tseng didn't even wait before picking up the fork and went through the crabcakes. He then drained the lobster bisque and spooned up the tiramisu in just a few bites then he left silently with the tray. 

Tseng had tossed the crackers on the table.

Rufus was dumbfounded.

He grabbed the pack of crackers, stared at it for a good minute, sighed and opened the package up.

He had eaten the chocolate cake, which was dry by the time he finally ate it, and he had eaten the remaining snacks in his stash. That was the night before.

He was almost falling asleep when he heard a light knock on his apartment door.

Who would be looking for him this late at night?

Rufus carefully opened the door.  
Nobody was outside, but a wafting scent caught his attention. A covered tray was left on one side of the wall outside his door.

He'd know that scent anywhere. His mother had made it for him numerous times growing up. Rufus quickly pulled the tray into his apartment and opened the cover.

Two sets of crepes, one stuffed with shrimp and spinach, the other with strawberries and fresh whipped cream.

~...~

Tseng came around again the following morning.  
He had just opened the doors to Rufus's apartment when a flying hand snatched a couple of pancakes off of the top of the plate.

He watched in amusement as Rufus wolfed down the pancakes with his bare hands.

"You should wash your hands first Sir."

"Shut up."

Tseng held the tray up with one arm and took Rufus's hand with his other. 

"Come eat. I just prepared these myself."

Rufus stopped to look at him. "You made this?"  
Tseng nodded.

"You didn't drug my food did you?" Rufus's eyes narrowed at him.

Tseng wordlessly put down the tray on the coffee table.

"If you're worried about the food being drugged, I can assure you it is not. I'll eat it if you're not going to..." he said as he picked up the fork from the tray.

"No!" Rufus pulled the tray away from Tseng.

"On second thought, yes, you eat first so I make sure it's not drugged." He pushed the tray back towards Tseng.

Tseng started on what's left of the pancakes, then the toast, then the pan-grilled sausages, took a sip of the apple juice. Before he could get in another bite, Rufus had pulled the tray away once more.

"That's enough, give me the fork."

"Would you like a fresh fork instead Sir?"

Rufus didn't answer and took the used fork from Tseng's hand and began eating.

"Were you the one who left the crepes last night?"  
Tseng realized Rufus was talking to him as he had been staring too intently at the heir stuff his face.

"What do you think Sir?"

Lunch time rolled around, shrimp pasta in spicy tomato cream sauce, a side of Caesar salad, cherry cheesecake, his favorite.

Rufus sat down properly at the dining table this time, Tseng sat next to him.

"You know, you're the first person who's ever eaten all my food."

Tseng only smiled at him. "I didn't eat ALL of it."

Rufus gave him a look. "I'm still not letting my dad have the satisfaction of winning, I just don't want you eating more of my food."

When dinner time came by, Tseng had brought more than just food. A jet black guard hound puppy with red eyes was poking its head out from inside Tseng's suit jacket. Rufus was delighted.

He rolled around with the puppy on the carpet and the food was almost forgotten. Almost forgotten until he heard the sound of the fork and knife.

"Oh no you don't! That's MY DINNER."

Tseng put the silverware back down with a smirk.

"You're a real piece of work you know that Tseng?"

"I'll take that as a compliment Sir."

~...~

The next day, his father must have heard the "good news" and thought his son was over his hunger strike.

Heidegger was sent up to his apartment with a tray of food. Rufus was actually disappointed that it wasn't Tseng.

Heidegger scowled at the puppy gnawing on his shoes.

"You shouldn't have pets up here Sir, it's going to make a mess and who's going to clean up after it?"

"Are you suggesting Reeve's robot is a better alternative Director?" Rufus replied. "If you are..." He pointed at the disassembled mess of a cat still on his coffee table.

The look Heidegger gave him would have given any other boy his age the chills, but he was Rufus Shinra.

Rufus huffed as he examined the food on the tray.  
None of it looked appetizing. "Leave me be Director."

He called up his father.  
"I want Tseng to bring my food from now on." with that, he hung up.

Lunch was delivered by Tseng. It looked so much more appetizing. Tseng took one look at the untouched tray sitting on Rufus's table.

"Was breakfast not to your liking Sir?"

Rufus's face twisted with disgust. "Tseng, you're a Turk right?"

"Yes Sir." Tseng cocked his head as he wasn't sure what Rufus was getting at.

"Can you punch Heidegger in the face?"

".....I can't without good reason." Tseng replied.

Rufus waved a hand at the awful-looking breakfast on the table. "Is that good enough of a reason?"

Tseng chuckled. "Unfortunately, no."

"Damn it..."

Tseng switched the two trays silently and left Rufus to eat in peace.

~...~

The dinner table was lively today.  
It was only two nights after the healing rain had fallen and Geostigma gone. Rufus decided to host a dinner buffet for the children of Healen Lodge.

The Turks and himself took up their dinner at a table in their own cabin. If there was one thing Rufus realized, it was that he had his whole life in front of him once again. The liberty of knowing he was in decent health was almost too much. He looked around the table at his most loyal men and woman. 

Some of them should have been dead. He himself should have been dead.

'Stop with the depressing thoughts Rufus', he told himself. He took up his fork and dug into his food.

Tseng watched with unreadable eyes as the President of the former Shinra Electric Company ate. There was so much he was sure both had to say to each other. They could amass a fortune at a casino with their combined luck. He hadn't expected either of them to survive the events of the past two years, but yet here they are.

Suddenly, a spoonful of something green dropped onto Tseng's plate. Peas. A ghost of a grin was on Rufus's face as his hand retreated from Tseng's plate.

"Sir. I thought you were over not liking peas."

"I am not exactly." Rufus drawled.

Reno, Rude, and Elena looked up from their respective plates at the bizarre exchange.

"I only eat them because you literally ate all my food one time. My breakfast, lunch, AND dinner. I still can't believe you had left me starving Tseng."

The rest of the Turks looked at each other with confusion and a little alarm. Rufus's face had an expression of mischief.

Not in the nineteen years since had Tseng or Rufus himself mentioned that event. Tseng hadn't even told his fellow Turks except for Veld.

Tseng only smiled with the memory.  
That was when the foundations of trust and friendship had been laid between them.

He took the peas and dumped them back onto Rufus's plate.

"You better eat them now or I'll eat your dinner again."

**Author's Note:**

> I want to believe both Rufus and Tseng were mischievous little twerps in their early teens.
> 
> Yes Rufus took apart a preliminary model of Cait Sith...and I just have to emphasize that he ate Tseng's cooking. =) 
> 
> The crepes part of the story is that Tseng had followed Rufus's mom's recipe and made and left the crepes for Rufus late at night. Rufus's mother is assumed to have already passed away by this time.
> 
> Tseng can make Rufus eat his peas.


End file.
